“It is because of your support we can do this. Thank you, and please keep it up, there is still more work to do,” says Victor Kalisher, Head of Bible Society in Israel (BSI).

“For me to know I am here in Israel and you are on the other side of the world, but we are working together in unity to build the body of Christ – it’s so encouraging for us here at BSI.”

One of the ways you can help with Bible mission in Israel right now is by helping BSI reach out to migrants in the Holy Land with the Bible.

Faithful outreach

Every week, without fail, Victor and his team pack up their supplies of Bibles, biblical materials, tables and soup pots and head out to areas of Jerusalem frequented by desperate and poor migrants. They come from many countries including Ethiopia and Russia. The refugees sit, waiting patiently, as the team prepare the food. “Seeing how desperately hungry they are is very sad and makes us wish we could do more,” says Victor.

But what he and his team do is open up the fullness of the Bible to these migrants. “We share with them, talk and give them the Gospel. It’s amazing. People ask us questions. Just a few weeks ago a man approached us and said, ‘I want to know more about Jesus, do you have some materials?’ We gave him a New Testament. This is just one example.”

“We give them spiritual food and provide the Bible in many different languages for them,” said Victor.

“One time, an Israeli man came up to us. He said he’d been watching us from a distance and noticed we were not only giving food but we also cared and talked to the refugees showing them love. ‘I know who you are and I know you give Christian literature. Your Jesus must have a lot of love and you show it to others,’ he said. When we asked him if he would like a New Testament in Hebrew, he told us if we had met him in the streets of Tel Aviv he would have said no. But because of what he witnessed today he said, ‘Your God must be a great man and I am more than happy to take a New Testament.’”

Victor’s story

Victor, who trained as an electrical engineer, joined Bible Society because it was a calling on his life. “I knew I would serve the Lord full-time. I knew it from my childhood.”

“My father is a holocaust survivor,” said Victor. “He then went through the Independence War (the 1948 Arab-Israeli war) and with no surviving family or any worldly goods left he came to faith by receiving a Bible. He started reading it and realised there was a God in spite of everything he had been through.

“The Word of God is living and it changes lives. I’ve seen it through the life of my father. He was never angry. I saw how God worked in his heart. So for me, I know the Lord can change lives through his Word.”

“There are many things that are happening in Israel. In the news you hear about conflict but you don’t hear about what God is doing. God is doing a lot. There is a growing body of believers, people come to faith and they are eager to share their faith with others.”

The King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of mine, even the least of them, you did it to me.’  Matthew 25:40 (NAS1977)

Easter/Passover outreach

During the time of Easter and Passover, BSI tried a different approach with a Gospel choir from France. During the day, staff and volunteers went out onto the streets and beaches inviting people to the nightly concerts.

“At the entrance, we placed a big table stacked with Bibles in assorted languages. We were surprised by how many books were gone on the first night. The people said that the choir was very good and it even attracted local neighbouring Israelis. Following each song, a short gospel message was given,” shared Victor.

The homeless, drug addicts and refugees from the park were also invited. Each night after the concert, BSI organised a big cookout and invited everyone. “It was so good to see their smiling faces. For a few hours, at least, they were able to forget all their problems. Some of the people asked for prayer, including a young Israeli woman who was a drug addict. She approached the pastor who had just spoken and hugged him and she said with tears running down her face,

‘Your message touched me. Can your Jesus save me? Please pray for me, I want to start a new life.’”

Victor says BSI is now in regular contact with her and praying God will touch her and transform her life.